Government pledges aid to tackle modern slavery

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt has announced that 40 million pounds in UK aid will help over 500,000 vulnerable men, women and children around the world who have either survived modern slavery or are at risk of becoming victims.

The funding was announced to coincide with International Day for the Abolition of Slavery, which took place on December 2, as part of the Prime Minister’s pledge at the United Nations General Assembly to double the UK’s aid commitment to tackling modern slavery that takes place in the UK’s supply chains.

“It is time to eradicate this shameful practice,” said Mordaunt. “Slavery, anywhere, must not be tolerated in the 21st century, and our work to stamp out this practice abroad will support our effort to end slavery in the UK. This is a long-term challenge and others must follow our lead.”

The 40 million pound package of UK aid includes, a 20 million pound contribution to the Global Fund to End Modern Slavery, which will be used to target sectors with a high risk of slavery, like the garment sector. This initiative is in partnership with the United States and aims to leverage 1.5 billion dollars to address the lack of resources in tackling modern slavery.

UK pledges 40 million pounds to help target modern slavery

In addition, 13 million pounds will be used for the second phase of the Work in Freedom programme to prevent trafficking and forced labour among women migrant workers from South Asia, which has the highest prevalence of forced labour globally, while 7 million pounds will be used in Nigeria to focus on creating credible alternative livelihoods in hospitality, creative industries, technology and agri-entrepreneurship so people are not forced into a life of trafficking, providing better victim support and counselling, and increasing public awareness of the risks of trafficking.

Research from the Ethical Trading Initiative, which is partly funded by the Department for International Development, revealed that 77 percent of companies surveyed in the UK last year thought there was a likelihood of modern slavery occurring in their supply chains. Asda, Ikea, John Lewis, Marks and Spencer and Tesco were among the retailers happy to be named as participants in the research. However, the report did not state whether they thought modern slavery could occur in their supply chains.

Image: courtesy of Department for International Development